Great Lingy and High Pike from Caldback Common

The best autumn day this year so far sees us back in familiar territory again. We have a rough plan of what we will do today, but nothing fixed. So long as we get a decent walk and enjoy it, nothing else matters.

Heading down Dale beck

Beautiful day, the sun is in our eyes a lot this morning, but we're not complaining.

Lone Rowan on Silver Gill

Crossing Silver Gill

We find ourselves using 'proper' paths less and less on these Northern fells. It's a great way to avoid all the summit baggers and half term holiday makers! We had half a plan to go up Roughton Gill (seen here), but we've been up there before and decided to take a new route today. We went up Todd Gill instead. No path, just bits of sheep trods here and there.

Bit bright for taking photos ahead!

A bit of respite from the bright sun in our eyes as we walk in shadow for a while. There are lovely clear cascades all the way up here

Sorry about the shadow!

And again!

 At the top of Todd Gill we emerge onto Great Lingy Hill. As it's lunch time, it would be rude not to.......... so we head over towards Lingy Hut

The Eden valley was under the cloud when we left home this morning, it looks like it still is now. Bet Jay will be wishing she had come with us!!

Too nice to sit inside today, so we bring the bench out and have lunch in style

Snoozing in the sunshine (Breeze, not me)

As we were leaving Lingy Hut, cloud had started to blow in from the west

and by the time we reached High Pike we were surrounded. It was obviously just low cloud blowing through and wasn't going to last, but the temperature dropped by a good few degrees.

By the time we had dropped down into the start of Potts Gill we were back in the sunshine again

Goofy Spaniel and a Rowan tree in Potts Gill

Looking back up Potts Gill as we near the Cumbria way.

From here it was just a short step along the Cumbria way back to the car at Fellside. Around 7.5 miles all told. We did see a few folk today - but only when we were on the Cumbria way around the summits. Not bad for school holiday time!

Therapy in Mosedale

We walk around Grainsgill most weeks at some point, at least once. I virtually never take my camera and rarely even take any phone pics. But I did take some phone pics today.

We need a bit of therapy at the moment and it doesn't come much better than this. Close to home comfort, no-one else in sight and just out for an hour or two making it up as we go along.

I've no idea how far we walked or exactly how long we were out, but we all enjoyed it and that's all that really matters.

Sanatorium Sanity

Sometimes walking is as much for the mind as the body. Right now that's what we need and staying close to home on territory that we know well enough not to have to plan anything is what feels right to us at the moment

We had parked at the Sanatorium and headed along the terrace. Breeze does her usual anticlockwise whirly thing as we set on our way

Quite dramatic clouds are the theme for today

and water!

So we've got to the top of the balcony by now and turned right towards Skiddaw House. I think I'm being watched!

Looking south

Just before we reach Skiddaw house we head up Burnt Horse

Easy navigating!

Behind us the drama in the sky continues

Mrs Herdy has a nap

An area known as Flag Pots

Striding out - Great Calva pops out of the cloud in the background - that's the first time we've seen it's summit today

and then the cloud rolls in again

Lunch with a damp dog. I know it doesn't look much like it, but she does like having her jumper on at lunchtime!

We were sitting in cloud at this point - but suddenly some eerie looking silhouettes began to appear

As the clouds roll away, it gradually becomes more apparent - the shoreline of Derwentwater

Never miss a posing platform!

Jenkins Hill

Waiting impatiently

Beautiful autumn colours 

Just after crossing the Glenderaterra Beck we met a gentleman who was trying to get to Keswick on the old railway path (which has been closed since the storms in Dec 2015). To cut a long story short, it became clear that he had managed to get himself a bit lost and was not capable of making it either into Keswick, or back to Threlkeld where he had started out from, having arrived by bus.

Having considered the options (somewhat limited it became clear) we walked him back up to Derwentfolds where we left him while we walked back up to the sanatorium to fetch the car. 

The sanatorium appears to be getting a new roof!

We then had a 3 mile drive to get from our car parking spot, back to the spot where we had left him, picked him up and returned to Threlkeld village where we left him at the pub to wait for the bus! Our good turn for the day we felt.

So a bit of a strange end to the walk - about 8 miles walked and nearly as many driven back and forth around Threlkeld!